Tennis-Scorching heat grips U.S. Open second round
NEW YORK, Aug 28 (Reuters) -Sweltering conditions gripped the U.S. Open on Wednesday, testing spectators and competitors alike as athletes tried to wrap up their second-round matches quickly.
Temperatures topped 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32.2°C) by late afternoon as the sun beat down on the tens of thousands of fans who arrived at the sprawling Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
Madison Keys was relieved to get past Australian qualifier Maya Joint 6-4 6-0 in just 62 minutes at Arthur Ashe Stadium.
"I just wanted to get on and get off," the 2017 runner-up said, after she set up a meeting in the next round with Belgian Elise Mertens.
German Alexander Zverev said he was pleased to get past French wildcard Alexandre Muller relatively quickly with a 6-4 7-6 6-1 win at Louis Armstrong Stadium, as he set up a match with Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry.
"I was at some point very, very wet. The whole court was flooded from me," Zverev said. "But I felt good physically."
While high temperatures and a beating sun are nothing new at the year's final major, the conditions on Wednesday tested fans and players alike, and some athletes were not lucky enough to get a quick escape from the heat.
Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen placed an ice towel around her head during her 6-7(3) 6-1 6-2 second-round win over unseeded Erika Andreeva under the blazing sun at the Grandstand, where officials had to call a 10-minute heat break.
"Today the weather is too hot. Yeah, but all the crowd is here suffering with me from the heat," said the Chinese seventh seed, who will next play German Jule Niemeier.
Second-round opponents Andrey Rublev of Russia and Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech wrapped themselves in ice towels during the changeovers and Rinderknech fell to the court with exhaustion after a 37-shot rally.
Reporting by Amy Tennery and Karl Plume in New York, Aadi Nair and Rohith Nair in Bengaluru, and Frank Pingue in Toronto; editing by Clare Fallon
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